Secrecy surrounds Trump's plan for West L.A. veterans housing

VETERANS say they have not been consulted on the housing plan for the VA campus in West Los Angeles.

- BY DOUG SMITH

ALLEN J. SCHABEN Los Angeles Times VETERANS say they have not been consulted on the housing plan for the VA campus in West Los Angeles.

President Trump's executive order calling for a National Center for Warrior Independence to house thousands of veterans in West Los Angeles has gained widespread support, including among his political opposition.

But as a deadline approaches for an action plan to be submitted to the president, supporters of the order have become alarmed that potentially radical change for land donated as a home for disabled veterans more than a century ago is being drafted behind a wall of secrecy.

The Department of Veterans Affairs has required everyone associated with the planning — employees, contractors and other government officials — to sign nondisclosure agreements and has denied both congressional staffers and veterans and their advocates the opportunity to review or comment on the plan, they say.

"I am thankful for President Trump's executive order," said Iraq war veteran Rob Reynolds, speaking at a roundtable on the executive order last week. "This is the first time I've seen or read anything where the president of the United States has taken a position that this is a Soldiers' Home."

But Reynolds, who has become an unofficial advocate for veterans trying to obtain housing and services on the West L.A. campus, said the VA has blown an opportunity to build trust with veterans.

"I've seen over the years how it goes when you have meetings behind closed doors and you don't consult with people affected by the plan," he said. "There's going to be problems with that plan."

The three-hour session in the Bob Hope Patriotic Hall near downtown was convened by Rep. Mark Takano (D-Riverside), ranking member of the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs.